Bryophytes Survey - North Carolina

Questionnaire: Status, protection and knowledge of bryophytes

April 2003

A. KNOWLEDGE ABOUT DECLINING BRYOPHYTES IN YOUR COUNTRY

1. If a distinct decline of bryophytes occur in your region, which species (or taxonomic groups) have decreased mostly? Please give examples of the taxonomic group and information on its decline in the concerned area.

In North Carolina, species which are associated with the bark of Fraser fir (Abies fraseri) are most at-risk. The bark of Fraser fir provides the substrate for 27 species of bryophytes (Smith et. Al 1991). The decline of the fir forests due to the invasion of the exotic balsam woolly adelgid has caused many rare bryophytes to be further imperilled. Six special concern bryophytes are known to occur exclusively in old growth Fraser fir forests. These include 5 liverworts and one moss. The following list is summarized from: Davison, Paul, K. McFarland, and D. Smith. 1999. RTE Bryophyte Survey of Southern Appalachian Fraser Fir Forests, North Carolina, Tennessee,Virginia. Prepared for Natural Heritage Programs, North Carolina and Tennessee. ; Bazzania nudicaulis Evans – secure; Leptoscyphus cuneifolius (Hook.) Mitt. – at risk; Leptodontium excelsum (Sull.) Britt. – uncertain, likely at risk; Metzgeria temperate Kuwahara – secure;Plagiochila tridenticulata (sensu N.A. authors) - secure; Sphenolobopsis pearsoni (Spr.) Schust. & Kitag. – secure.

2. Do you have any (outdated and recent) "Red Lists" for bryophytes in your country or in the region where you have studied bryophytes? If it is published – please tell us the literature reference. If it is not published – can you please send us a Xerox copy?

The North Carolina Natural Heritage Program List of Rare Plant Species of North Carolina (J. Amoroso 2002) includes lists for mosses, liverworts, hornworts, and lichens, along with state and federal status and rank. This document is available for download at the NC Natural Heritage Program website: http://ils.unc.edu/parkproject/nhp/publication.htm .

1. If a distinct decline of bryophytes occur in your region, which species (or taxonomic groups) have decreased mostly? Please give examples of the taxonomic group and information on its decline in the concerned area.

In North Carolina, species which are associated with the bark of Fraser fir (Abies fraseri) are most at-risk. The bark of Fraser fir provides the substrate for 27 species of bryophytes (Smith et. Al 1991). The decline of the fir forests due to the invasion of the exotic balsam woolly adelgid has caused many rare bryophytes to be further imperilled. Six special concern bryophytes are known to occur exclusively in old growth Fraser fir forests. These include 5 liverworts and one moss. The following list is summarized from: Davison, Paul, K. McFarland, and D. Smith. 1999. RTE Bryophyte Survey of Southern Appalachian Fraser Fir Forests, North Carolina, Tennessee,Virginia. Prepared for Natural Heritage Programs, North Carolina and Tennessee. ; Bazzania nudicaulis Evans – secure; Leptoscyphus cuneifolius (Hook.) Mitt. – at risk; Leptodontium excelsum (Sull.) Britt. – uncertain, likely at risk; Metzgeria temperate Kuwahara – secure;Plagiochila tridenticulata (sensu N.A. authors) - secure; Sphenolobopsis pearsoni (Spr.) Schust. & Kitag. – secure.

2. Do you have any (outdated and recent) "Red Lists" for bryophytes in your country or in the region where you have studied bryophytes? If it is published – please tell us the literature reference. If it is not published – can you please send us a Xerox copy?

The North Carolina Natural Heritage Program List of Rare Plant Species of North Carolina (J. Amoroso 2002) includes lists for mosses, liverworts, hornworts, and lichens, along with state and federal status and rank. This document is available for download at the NC Natural Heritage Program website: http://ils.unc.edu/parkproject/nhp/publication.htm .

3. Do you know if anything (beside the above mentioned Red Lists) is published/reported about change in the bryophyte flora in the region you know best?

In addition to the reports listed above, the North Carolina Natural Heritage Program has an unpublished report entitled: Amoroso, J.L., L. Anderson, P. Davison, M. Hicks, A. Risk. 1997. Bryophyte Status Survey Abstracts. Unpublished report to the North Carolina Natural Heritage Program and Endangered Species Field Office, US Fish and Wildlife Service.; A copy of this report is included along with this survey.

4. Are any of your best bryophyte sites threatened in your area of concern or have they recently been destroyed? Can you mention one or several bryological “hot spots” in your region? (European bryologists can refer to the existing Bryophyte Register). Are any of your hot spots under threat?

North Carolina hosts a diversity of bryophytes, including approximately 440 species of mosses, 225 species of liverworts, and 9 species of hornworts. The greatest known threat to bryophytes in NC was described in Question 1-- the decline of the Fraser fir forests in the Southern Appalachian mountains.

5. Is there any research on endangered bryophytes or are there environmental studies involving bryophytes in your country/region?

6. Which are, in your opinion, probably the main causes for the decline of bryoflora in your region?

The main cause for decline of bryoflora in North Carolina would be the destruction of habitat – most notably the decline of Fraser fir forests due to the balsam woolly adelgid as well as anthropogenic destruction.

B. MEASURES FOR PROTECTION OF BRYOPHYTES

7. Are bryophytes in general or any bryophyte species protected by law in your country?

In North Carolina, no bryophyte species are protected by federal laws (no “Endangered”, “Threatened”, or “Candidate” species). However, there are 8 species of moss and 8 species of liverworts which are listed as Federal Species of Concern by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. For these species, “further biological research and field study are needed to resolve the conservation status of these taxa.”; The State of North Carolina has given legally protected status to 5 species of mosses and 1 species of liverwort. These laws are administered through the NC Plant Conservation Program of the NC Department of Agriculture. See Amoroso 2002 (referred to in question 2) for a list of these species.

I know of no explicit protections on bryophytes in North Carolina. However, all plants on federal and state lands have some level of protection (generally permission must be obtained for collection or destruction of plant material on public lands).

9. Are some bryophyte species (regularly) inventoried and is restoration of threatened species monitored? Is any other research carried out in connection with protective measures for bryophytes?

No periodic inventories of bryophyte species are ongoing in North Carolina at this time through the NC Plant Conservation Program or the NC Natural Heritage Program. No known restoration programs are taking place in NC. If restoration projects of threatened species were undertaken, they would be monitored by the NC Natural Heritage Program and potentially by the NC Plant Conservation Program and the US Fish and Wildlife Service, depending on rarity and status.